Coaches and Mentors

Dana W. Wolcott
Lead Innovation Coach

Dana has been the Lead Innovation Coach for the Simone Center since 2011. His roles and responsibilities include coaching teams of students in the process of customer discovery, design thinking and application of the business model canvas. 

In addition, it is his responsibility to recruit, train and lead the many coaches and judges who participate in the Simone Center classes and programs. 

Dana has worked at Eastman Kodak as the Director of the Innovation Network.
 

Jeff Arywitz
Senior Innovation and Venture Coach

Jeff has been coaching entrepreneurs since 2010 when he began volunteering for The Entrepreneurs Network. 

Now, as a Venture Coach at RIT’s Venture Creations Incubator, Jeff is dedicated to helping new technology companies and clean energy startups build strong businesses. 

Prior to 2010, Jeff held executive roles in technology marketing, sales, product development, and e-commerce management with several multinational companies, most notably the Eastman Kodak Company. 

Jeff is a graduate of RIT, with an MBA from the Saunders College of Business.

Jerry Adamski
Innovation Coach

Jerry joined RIT's Adjunct Faculty in 2016 and serves as an Innovation Coach for RIT's Simone Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship and Design Coach for Kate Gleason College of Engineering's Multidisciplinary Senior Design (MSD). 

He previously served as a startup CEO at RIT's Incubator, Venture Creations. Additionally he is a NYS Division of Science Technology & Innovation Executive coach and is a pending NSF I-Corps instructor.

His entrepreneurial skills have been developed as a graduate of The Entrepreneurs Network (TEN) program, as a CEO for a Venture Creations startup company, coach for over 50 startups with 35 unique technologies and by working for and with multiple size public, private and not for profit companies including Kodak, Gleason, Gerber Scientific, Al Sigl/CP Rochester and a variety of startups. 

Personally he enjoys parenting, volunteering, mentoring and supporting families with special needs in recreation. 

Steve Brookstein
Innovation Coach

Steve has over 40 years of marketing and general management experience, having held senior positions with companies such as Ogilvy & Mather, Young and Rubicam, HBO and Comcast.

He began his teaching career at FIT (Fashion Institute of Technology) in New York City, where he taught both marketing and entrepreneurship.

Upon relocating to Rochester in 2014, he is now an adjunct professor at Nazareth College. 

Beginning in spring 2017, Steve joined RIT as an adjunct professor in the Entrepreneurship program. This past summer he also coached in the Saunder's Summer Start accelerator.

Steve serves on the Board of Northland Cable and he is an angel investor in two start-ups.